Opening the 84th 7-Day Retreat

On Dec 09, 2016 (Nov 11 lunar calendar), the 84th 7-Day Retreat officially took place at Hoang Phap pagoda with more than 2,000 attendees from cities and provinces in the whole country.

n the morning, participants learned about the etiquette for Buddhist as how to walk, stand, lie down, sit, kowtow, bow, pray before meal, do walking recitation... After that, everyone settled the accommodation, dining rooms, and lecture halls.

In the afternoon, the abbot Venerable Thich Chan Tinh, head of the retreat, had a Dharma talk to the mass. In which he mentioned about the issue of Ba Vang Pagoda regarding the praying ceremony for the heavenly sage coming down to turn the Dharma Wheel here for us. The Venerable has stated his clear opinion on this issue.

Firstly, he referred to a similar case of "the Sacred Bodhi Tree planted by Devas".

This is quite a sensitive issue in Buddhism. As the Buddha’s followers, we should be awakened facing religious rumors with caution and wise to avoid the superstition or misleading thoughts that may cause obstacles and drive us afar from the Path to Liberation.

With recent news and notices posted at the site chuabavang.com, the Venerable highlighted key points that we need to reflect with consideration to avoid the misleading mindsets that are different from what Buddha teaches us. The ultimate guideline is Buddha’s teachings that we need to follow in practice. Besides, we should master the cause and effect rule, believe in and follow the teachings from predecessor masters and enlightened sages. Such mindset and behaviors will help us live aligned with Buddha Path, turn the Dharma wheel for sentient beings in the world to enjoy the true Dharma in long term.

Furthermore, we should respect and humbly study from the current enlightened sages and master monks who are ready to explain us the meaning of Buddha’s teachings. These virtuous sages are the ones who can encourage us on our way to the Enlightenment instead of any praying ceremony that promised the shortcut to the Attainment.

Finally, the Venerable reemphasized that we, Buddhists, should be careful with rumors in the era of booming information technology. We should be consistently practice as per Buddha’s teaching, immune to wrong/superstitious views that drive us away from the Path to Liberation.

After that, the Venerable disseminated the retreat regulation, information and schedules to the mass so that the retreat can be carried out in its best way for the sake of benefit for everyone. After the Dharma talk, the 84th7-Day Retreat officially opened.

Following are the recorded photographs: